Sarah girl, it's all about you ;)

Playin catchup with some pretty spectacular moments here....

First up, the little drama bee's 7th birthday.

God, I love this girl!

 A little "behind the scenes" for ya: there was actually no cake under these candles. Just my hands suffering melting wax... that's real love ;)

 She wished for Care Bears and a cloud car.... Yes, I have been plantin seeds ;)

Lunch date!

 Granny sent an over the top bouquet.....

Had a small little celebration that night, not really plannin on a big shebang.......

but daddy got a wild hair and turned on some tunes.....

And it turned into  quite the little party!

Then it somehow turned into a pillow fight......

But then daddy took off his shirt and things started to get a lil crazy ;)

"EWWW Daddy!!!"

And then Gabe was tryin to top Jerome.....and he ran out laughin!!! It was too much!

If I never laugh again in my life, I think I would be okay ;)

I am so blessed to have a father for the kid's who interacts to the point of ridiculous embarrassment on my end. Embarrassing your children is so much better than ignoring them.

To be a parent is remembering how to be a kid :)

Haters is a word I thought I'd never use.......

Ever just feel like sometimes you don't want to share your life with certain people? Like they don't even deserve a glimpse into your home even if they don't make their presence known?

I have totally been dealin with that kind of thinking this past week. Not with any of you who interact with me on here, I really like my blogging community peeps :) Ya'll aren't crazy like the facebook Online Yard Sale peeps. Yeah, I was called "evil" and "crazy" by a stranger who had saved an image of one of my banners and made it her profile image and background on facebook. I was apparently out of line for asking her why she did it. My bad, perfectly sane lady who just liked my banner so much she added it to the 4,647 pictures in her albums of other people's images......

So, anywho..... internet drama from strange unknown people and places.... a slew of ridiculous texts of accusation from one of the teen girl's we took in this summer for her own safety.... scathing letters of admonition from a wicked man who had no part in my upbringing but deserves "honor" for bedding my mother in between beatings......

It's all been pretty yucky, for sure. And it all has one thing in common.

COWARDICE.

 I have a hard time believing that any of it would have been said to me while looking into my eyes.

Not that my eyes have super amazing powers to control the tongue....

But wouldn't that be awesome?!

Is it working?.............

You're probably wondering why in the world someone as seemingly goofy, toy lovin, lighthearted and generally kind would have so many haters. Well, like I've said before. I am a child advocate. When a child comes to me with their own stories of abuse or sexual misconduct I take action on their behalf. And I know this sounds odd, but most of the time the adults involved in the situation don't take kindly to anyone givin those children a voice. It goes against that shadowy atmosphere they love to reside in. And I'm the pesky woman with a flashlight and a bullhorn.
 I love blogging like crazy and I have so much  missin on the docket! So after lettin off the steam I'm just gonna continue to do my thang. And if anyone who has verbally shared their "disgust" for me in private or even to my face (never happens) is here trollin, ask yourself this: If she's so intolerable, why do I come here?

And leave me alone shadow folks. I live my life in the light.

Peace.

Some good developments and a little Guess-tures

Oh my gosh, my last post was all about things lookin up.... they are even better, my friend!

I have so much awesome, never even thought would happen kinda things goin on in our lives right now and the biggest one, unfortunately, is not one I can talk about here. Don't you HATE that when a blogger says something stupid like that?! I do! 

But truly, if it were just my story to tell, I would shout it from the rooftops.... and if the other person involved in the "thing" I'm talkin about is reading this right now, can I just say "Hello, beautiful girl. You are constantly on our mind...." 

Okay, so enough with the mysteries of the deep....

How about some ridiculousness that has no depth at all?

Startin with this.....

 I sold another custom character and made a lil extra cash. This one was actually the first time money hit my palm, so it's technically my first "sale". Yay for for just startin somethin, right? Took me long enough!

Anyway, it gave me a few dollars to spend on some total necessities that we've been lacking in. We got some paper towels, after a month without them (never takin paper towels for granted again!) and we got some trash bags and we got this Troll doll. And I gave it to my best buddy because she helped me buy a dress that was $168 for a wedding. It pretty much evens out ;)

 And ALSO!! I passed up one of those outdoor decorative flags last week at Goodwill. You know the kind, with a ladybug or somethin on it. It was rolled up and I didn't even bother to look...

Today I was just curious about it. I really honestly cannot even tell you why I would be curious to see a tacky yard flag. I hate those things!

But IT WAS FATE!

 S-W-O-O-N!

Tuxedo Mask, I wanted to marry you when I was 13! I found someone better than you but it's still alright if I have a 4x3 banner of you over my bed, purely for nostalgic reasons okay? 

And I'm sorry, hipster tribal ear gauge guy, that you were 3 seconds too late in pickin it up. I really didn't mean to gloat as I squealed with delight as it unfolded before us...  

 And this deserves it's own post but I've been a lazy blogger lately so I better throw it in while I'm hot....

 If you guys aren't playin Guesstures or anything like it you need to think about starting.

It's really good for your health and vitality, trust me.

 It strengthen's your legs, buttocks and abs.... even as you're merely a spectator you receive a healthy dose of muscle contraction in your abs from laughin.....

Games breed a sense of accomplishment and camaraderie. Just like sports, but without sweat.

Keep practicing, buddy. You'll get your Guess-tures groove goin soon enough ;)

Things are lookin up

Hey people. It's been goin well for us down here. I've been pickin up some "work" makin photo booth characters and custom banners for kid parties. It's a hot gig, lemme tell ya... averaging about 25 cents an hour once a set's done. I should just go work for Kathie Lee ya know?

All kidding aside, I really enjoy it. I do it for free for the folks in my life, so it's nice to get compensated for once :) Just wish someone would request a cool character, someone like Mighty Mouse, Gumby, Ronald Reagan....

 I know that I could work A LOT faster if Gabe's wasn't so enamored with me. Even as I'm typin this out he's been on top of my head for a few minutes and thankfully he moved on to just stacking cans of tuna on my chest.... now in my left hand. Good thing I'm right handed. And just realized he stacked pillows on my head.... I'm a master of "going inward" and tuning stuff out. Most moms are...

 Here's what it usually looks like when I'm sewing.....

 But the toys being jabbed in my eye do vary...

 Sorry about that abrupt entry of Flathead. Just sharin what my new "fortune" has  allowed me to pick up. Scored him for 29 cents at the Geek's mecca. My cousin Joey had a bunch of the Dick Tracy toys. Seems like most of my childhood memories are based on my cousin Joey or Mike's toys.....

  He casts a long shadow, that one....
And I bought a completely useless grab bag just to pull this beauty out of....

 Wood grain, baby! 1969 

 And the finest mirror I have ever reflected out of.....

It was only $2.99! Could have made a happier face about it, right? 

See you later!

The League wants me to talk Blue....

Anothe League of Extraordinary Bloggers contribution.

The topic: Blue

Yes, that's it..... Blue.

I'm still an infant to the League so this may or may not be the right "Blue" ya'll are goin for,

but it made me happy slappin this together :) Blue just happens to be my favorite color......

 Hence my favorite blue shirt....

 Not my favorite Turtle. My sister always went in for the blue one.....

 But definitely one of my favorite Muppets....

 I've been carryin this postcard around for over a decade waitin on the right person for a blue haired worm greeting.....

 I happen to have a blue eye. Two of em' actually...... Maybe I need some blue tweezers.....

 Hey, he's got blue eyes too! ;)

I've been checkin out some other takes on "Blue".... so should you. Bust out of your blog rut and explore some random fun ;) SOOOO glad I did.
Mason made me SO jealous with his Muppet Babies lunchbox...
Miss M from Diary of a Dorkette representin the chick toys of our youth! Love her :)

The Geek showin off his superior toy collection again (jealous!)
If vintage prints and Sidney Poitier do you in then Erik the Illustrator's got you covered.
The Hobgoblin has a penchant for Batman's early years  blues....
More to come......

A dollar and a dig .....

So I came out of the closet and made it obvious that we're  fiscally challenged.

And it's all good, right ?  Every day we have what we need, exactly what we need.

And I am learning that less is more. And that a dollar goes a long way....if you're willin to dig ;)

 Oh, how sweet it is! To literally have one dollar in your pocket and find somethin for 50 cents that you collect! The local Christian Ministries resale shop sells all small/medium plush for 50 cents. The catch is, they have them all dumped in a huge wooden crate the size of a Ford Pinto.....

 Honestly, I've gotten over my social and public inhibitions and have started gettin into that box to dig. My kids have been scolded a few times for jumpin in, but I reason that was because they weren't serious buyers.

I haven't been told anything yet, so I'm hopin that I've attained preferred customer status and they're gonna let it slide.

So Ernie, welcome to the fam :) I'm gonna keep divin, diggin and searchin till I find the rest of your Applause family....... and maybe a spare monocle for the Count.

Now I have a lot of work to do, and happy to do it!
Our current situation has lit a flame under my butt to put myself out there for paid (gasp!) projects.
I have some custom Aladdin and Jasmine party figures to make and a baby shower banner also in the works.
So the lesson?
A tight spot just squeezes you out of complacency :)
Have a great day, guys!
P.S.
Yes. I am one of those people who would spend their last dollar on a vintage Ernie plush and two 70's Christmas decorations.